Don’t wait until Googlebot has already crawled draft or trashed posts to take care of it. If you do, you’ll have to address it in Google Webmaster tools.

1 – If you create WordPress draft posts, you can set the Robots Meta Settings to:

Apply noindex to this post/page

Apply nofollow to this post/page

Apply noarchive to this post/page

If your WordPress theme provides SEO settings, you can find them below the blog post in WordPress.

If you are using an SEO plugin, it may provide these settings as well.

When you turn on these settings, instructions are given to Googlebot NOT to crawl this URL.

Be sure to turn off these settings before you publish your post.

2. Create your blog posts using software on your computer instead of directly in WordPress. You can also use Google Docs to create documents that you can later transfer to WordPress once you are happy with them.

Another advantage of NOT keeping drafts in WordPress is what happens if your website crashes and you lose everything? Having those posts in a source program can be a lifesaver.

3. If you trash your WordPress post, be sure to empty the trash right away so the post is not sitting there for Googlebot to find.

Final Thoughts

Now that you know your draft posts can be crawled by Googlebot, what action will you take to prevent it?

If you are not already using Google Webmaster Tools, head over there and get your account setup so you keep track of the health of your website.